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Posts Tagged with ÔInterviewŐ

Long live PZ Myers!

INTERVIEW BY IAN MURPHY

The “magnificent P-Zed Myers,” as heâ€™s known by Richard Dawkins, is a fearless heathen. The tagline of his blog Pharyngula reads: â€śEvolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal.â€ť Heâ€™s publicly desecrated the Eucharist and been chastised by the Catholic Leagueâ€™s Bill Donohue, bucked down libel suits, received countless death threats from religious kooks and he can kick Godâ€™s old, white ass with nothing but his mind. Myers teaches biology at the University of Minnesota, Morris. We decided to give him a call. (more…)

Primate Robin Dunbar talks language, politics, and cyborgs

INTERVIEW BY IAN MURPHY

Evolutionary anthropologist, biologist and psychologist Robin Dunbar is most famous for comparing primate brain mass and troupe size to find the social limits imposed by the human brain. Dunbarâ€™s number (about 150) can be seen limiting the populations of indigenous tribes, army units, corporate offices and other social groups worldwide. Ian Murphy called Dunbar at his office at the Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Oxford. (more…)

DESPITE IAN MURPHYâ€™S IDIOTIC PITCH (â€śAll the cool social activists are doing it. If you do not participate, it will be clear that Noam Chomsky is way cooler than you, and Iâ€™ll be forced to get a tattoo illustrating that theme. Iâ€™m thinking Noam could be jumping over you on a motorcycleâ€ť), the inimitable author and historian Howard Zinn took the time to answer our questions. Heâ€™s a cool dude.

Your antiwar position is well known. Why do you hate the troops?(more…)

Massimo Pigliucci, Ph D., is a professor of evolution and of philosophy at SUNY Stony Brook. He has three doctorates – in genetics, botany, and philosophy. He contributes to Skeptical Inquirer and Philosophy Now, and his musings can be found at rationallyspeaking.org . We wrote to him and he wrote back.

It seems that people who are secular and/or have an understanding of evolution tend to procreate less. Does knowledge about evolution demystify the “miracle of birth,” and if so, doesn’t that indicate natural selection working against itself?

No, I don’t think demystification or natural selection have much to do with it. Certainly a naturalistic understanding of human reproduction does make one disinclined to think of life as a “miracle,” but that doesn’t mean it has less value, or that procreation becomes less of a strong instinct and a source of joy (and plenty of pain, of course). (more…)

We e-mailed him & he wrote us back!

Interview BY IAN MURPHY

…The BEAST: You often refer to Israel as being the United Statesâ€™ â€ścop on the beatâ€ť in the Middle East. Given the immense influence of the Israeli lobby AIPAC in our congress, whoâ€™s really calling the shots?

Noam Chomsky: The phrase is not mine. It was used by Nixonâ€™s Secretary of Defense, Melvyn Laird, referring to US policy in the Middle East. Similar descriptions were given at the same time by US intelligence, by Senator Henry Jackson (the Senateâ€™s leading specialist on the Middle East and energy), and others. (more…)

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